The big W....

I'm a worrier. Always have been, but hopefully won't always be one. I try to let go of some things that cause me worry, but in the end, it eats at me. A few months ago I went to a women's retreat and the speaker told us the parable of the soils. She told us that women are often like the seeds choked out by vines. Those vines, including worry, are what keep us from being in the good soil and growing and relishing in God's word. She told us that worry is a sin. And if that's the case, which I know it is, then I sin a lot because I tend to worry a lot.

If WEG goes out with friends, I worry about him. Not about what he's doing because I trust him, but about his safety. I worry that he'll make it home okay. I can't fall asleep until he's home. It's a worry that's totally out of my control, but one I obsess about, nevertheless.

I worry about money...all the time. I was not very smart with credit cards in college, and I am paying off debt. Sometimes when it gets to the end of the month, I worry that I won't have enough. I am constantly budgeting...adding up what I have left to pay for in the month minus what I currently have. I hate to go under a certain amount in my checking account because I feel like I need that for emergencies. I've got a little money in a savings account, but not a lot, so I worry. (As a side note- in December, I will have the credit card debt paid off, so hopefully this will be less of a worry)

I worry about my job security and the future of my job. I'm pretty sure I'm safe, but the reality is the cost of living keeps going up, and there is just no money for raises. So, I don't know if or when I'll get a raise. And that worries me. Because if prices of gas, groceries, and clothing continue to rise, yet my pay does not, what will I do? Yet another worry.

I worry about something happening to my parents. I'm an only child so the sole responsibility for dealing with it would fall on me. It's a nagging thought in the back of my mind all the time. Certainly not something I can control, but still something that worries me.

See, I told you I was a worrier. I also worry about small day-to-day things. It may be why I always take the reins when something is being planned because I worry that they won't be done right if I don't. Okay, so maybe you could also call me a control-freak, but that sounds too harsh.

So, what should I do about this constant worrying? I know the answer. It's as clear as day, and it was reiterated to me upon reading the Proverbs 31 devotion of the day today. I should give all my worries over to God. In fact, it says in Matthew 6:27: "And who of you, by being worried, can add a single hour to his life?" So true. My worrying doesn't get me anywhere. It just puts my stomach in knots and stresses me out. It doesn't matter how much I worry about a situation, God has it in his hands and will have it turn out just as he has planned. Wow, what a revelation. But not so much a revelation as something I have known all my life. So, why do I continue to worry?

I need to work on it, no doubt, and show Satan who is boss because, clearly, that's who is sneaking into my life when I worry. If it were January 1st, I'd make this my New Year's Resolution, but it's not, so how about I just make it a life change? It's going to take a lot of prayers to let go and let God have control of my worry, but I think I'm up to the challenge.

What about you? Do you worry? Have you let go of worry? Was it easy or hard? How did you do it and succeed?